The centerpiece of Cat Power’s latest album “Sun” (Matador Records) is “Nothin’ But Time,” an 11-minute vamp that pays tribute to David Bowie’s “Heroes.” The song has a sound and feel similar to Bowie’s Berlin period with a nice surprise toward the end: a vocal cameo from longtime Bowie compadre Iggy Pop, who appears in a sort of wise-elder role.

Alas, to the disappointment of Cat Power’s Chan Marshall, she and Pop did not get to share a microphone in the studio on “Nothin’ But Time,” which was a remote collaboration in which they sent tracks back and forth. In real life, Pop and Marshall have never physically met.

“So far, I’ve missed meeting him personally,” Marshall said in a recent interview. “I’ve gone to see him play twice, but I got lost afterward both times trying to find him. So I have yet to wrap my arms around him in a huge hug. We text. He’s amazing, just the sweetest and most awesome man.”

For more, including details on Cat Power’s Sunday night show in Carrboro, see the preview interview in Friday’s paper.